Somermount Mine
Somermount Mine is located at the base of Somermount, a small grouping of peaks located in Somerlund County . Discovery of Mithril While prospecting in Somermount in his youth, Darius Keylock , discovered rich veins of Mithril running in the area. He opened Somermount Mine shortly thereafter and founded the Keylock Company with the riches being produced from the mine. During its early years, the mine wasn't much more than a big hole carved into the mountain's base with the help of the Mage's Guild. Once Darius Keylock abandoned his use of the Mage's Guild and Ibn Al'Asad began his work at the Academy, Ibn's architectural knowledge allowed for an underground structure to be built as an ante-chamber for the actual mine. This ante-chamber was expanded over the years to include an Overseer's Office, Resting Quarters, a Mess Hall, and a locked storage area. Prosperity After the mine was properly outfitted with the ante-chamber and other quarters, production at the mine grew rapidly as teams of miners could work in shifts. Somermount Mine Camp was established outside of the mine to house workers, horses, a blacksmith, and a counting house. A small road was built to connect the camp to the main road of Somerlund County. This facilitated the export of materials to the city of Somerlund . Eventually the rich veins in the mine began to run dry. Keylock Academy was charged with locating more Mithril inside the mine. After months of laborious test digs, they found more veins deeper inside the mine. Darius then ordered second level to be constructed that delved deeper into the mountain. The second level became known as the Somermount Mine Depths. At the behest of the Keylock Academy, the two levels were seperated by a stone doorway meant to protect the first level in the event of a collapse down in the depths. Recent Struggles Once the second level became operational, Darius Keylock hired a new foreman for the mine, Kent Rockman. Kent established new rules for the miner's safety. These rules required that miner's only work in 4 hour shifts and can only enter the depths in groups. Each miner is assigned a partner and must never stray farther than 6 feet from their partner when in the depths. While digging in the newest part of the depths, miners broke through to a network of natural caves. Kent forbid any miner from entering the caves and ordered them sealed off with wooden beams until the Academy could explore them. Also during this time, a large and seemingly impenetrable wall was discovered. For fear of a collapse, Kent restricted digging in that area until it was surveyed by the Academy. Shortly after these discoveries, miners began falling ill while working in the depths. The academy determined that a lack of fresh air was the cause. All mining in the depths was haulted and construction of a new airshaft from the first level of the mine to the surface was ordered. It was determined that increasing airflow from the first level would resolve the issues of air cirulation down in the depths. However, during the digging of the airshaft, a loose pocket of gravel was tapped and caused a collapse in the first level of the mine. Several miners were killed and many more injured. Thanks to a group of adventurers, at least one miner was rescued from inside the mine. Currently, mining operations have been put on hold until the wounded can be healed and the workforce replenished. The Academy has determined that the loose pocket of gravel that caused the collapse was an isolated pocket and there should be no further trouble from the new airshaft. It is believed that once the workforce is replenished, mining in the depths will resume. However, the miners have been talking about rumors that some powerful force found either in the caves or behind the recently discovered wall may be the cause of the collapse. There is no evidence to back up these theories.